Am I the only one who thinks that the latest Burger King ads are a little…well…disturbing? Subservient Chickens? Whopper Virgins?Â At the same time, a good campaign gains sales and mindshare – and sometimes the weirdest ideas have the most legs (after all, who doesn’t remember the “Where’s the Beef” ads of the 80’s?)

It’s one thing to create a unique and edgy SEO copywriting campaign that’s ripe for viral marketing goodness. It’s another to create a campaign that backfires, leaving you with a reputation management mess (and no sales.)Â Here are some top good and bad examples from today’s headlines:

Remember the Motrin Moms snafu? Motrin wasn’t the only brand to get slammed in the search engines, Twitter and blogs – there have been many other companies who crossed the line from cute into insulting. Check out iMedia Connections list of the most offensive campaigns.

300,000 YouTube hits in just two weeks? Who knew that a mounted talking fish could gain such a following? Learn what made McDonald’s Filet-O-Fish advertising a (weird) viral sensation.

The holy grail of wacky marketing is to not only attract new customers and build brand awareness – but also create a new profit center. No-one does this better than the folks at BlendTec, who created theÂ WillItBlend.com site. With over 100,000 YouTube subscribers, a huge increase in blender sales and a new profit center – advertising and DVD sales on the WillItBlend.com site – these guys have mastered monentizing the wacky and wonderful. Learn more from Tipping Point Labs.

Today’s SEO copywriting challenge: How can your company think out of the box and do something a little different?Â Maybe a new PPC campaign?Â Or you could test a Web page to see if a new tone and feel worked for you. Sometmes, going outside the norm can net some fantastic results.

Heather,
Thanks for the link inclusion. I think the guys at Blendtec are really savvy. As I understand it, most of their marketing is completely home grown. No agency… nothing. They really get it.
I’ll keep reading your stuff.
Thanks,
Andrew